The fast food donut fries battle

In July of last year, Dunkin’ made a huge splash in the sweet goods category with the nationwide debut of Donut Fries. These individual pieces of buttery, croissant-style donut dough tossed in cinnamon sugar and served warm quickly became a hit, and helped to boost Dunkin’s late morning and afternoon sales.

Another fast food giant is looking to capitalize on this popular item. Internal documents leaked by Business Insider show that McDonald’s is planning on releasing its own version of the sweet treat to help improve its struggling breakfast sales.

The sticks are a new strategy from McDonald’s, which has tested other items in the past year to give its breakfast menu a boost. Last summer, the chain tested muffin tops (reminiscent of a plot from the hit television series Seinfeld) at several Baltimore-area restaurants.

McDonald’s would reportedly launch its version of Donut Fries for a limited time in February, although it has not yet confirmed the product. It would consist of 6 or 12 strips of deep-fried dough sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and would only be available during breakfast hours.

The move would be a big one for McDonald’s, which has not had a major addition to its breakfast menu in over 15 years. The chain introduced its McGriddle breakfast sandwiches in 2003.

The success of Dunkin’s Donut Fries was bound to inspire others to develop similar product offerings. In a statement from a Dunkin’ spokesperson to Boston.com:

“We’re not surprised to see competitors imitate our success with Donut Fries given their popularity with customers, and we will continue to lead the way in introducing fun, unique, delicious items that bring smiles and keep people energized any time of day.”